Car dealers, car rental business expect gloomier outlook after Lunar New Year
SINGAPORE: COE prices have plunged, with the premium for big cars nosediving to S$200 recently.
Despite that, industry experts said sales will most likely go down after the Lunar New Year.
To attract more customers, Honda is absorbing the COE premiums for small and big cars.
Vincent Ng, Honda's product manager, said: "In the past, COE levels
were very high and it's not within our profit margin to absorb the COE.
But at this level, we are still able to do so."
With the promotion, sales have gone up slightly.
But with fewer people deregistering their cars, coupled with
economic uncertainties and the upcoming reduction of the COE quota,
dealers are cautious about the future.
Mr Ng said: "One of the biggest cut will come from the allowed
(vehicle) growth which the Transport Minister has already
announced...it's going to be cut from 3% to 1.5%. That itself will
already result in more than 13,000 COEs being taken away from the quota
next year."
Meanwhile, the Lunar New Year week is the peak period for car rental business.
But for this year, companies said business has dropped 20 to 30 per cent.
Even enquiries fell by some 40 per cent, said a company.
Car rental firms said they will probably have to reduce their fleet
of cars after the Lunar New Year, as they expect a further decline in
business.
- CNA/ir
Some agents, though claim that they absorb the COE, still sell their cars at high levels of mid $50k on average for mid-sized cars...plus high interest rates...it's almost like gimmick to me...